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Oneway 1640 vs Powermatic 3520B

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I'm getting ready to retire and am thinking of buying a new lathe, one that will, in all probability, be the last lathe I buy. I want a lathe that will do just about anything I could ever reasonably want to do, and I have narrowed it down to the Oneway 1640 and the Powermatic 3520B. I would appreciate any advice from forum members as to which of the two I should go with. Thank you for your help.
 
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Both are very capable lathes which would serve you well as the last lathe you will own. There is no bad choice.

I would tend to get the Oneway. The Oneway has more options.

The Powermatic is a terrific lathe with a fantastic owner community. If you prefer grass routes solutions over manufacture solutions then the Powermatic is likely to be you better choice.
 
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I am partial to the sliding headstock. I can't turn out board because my lathe sits in a corner. Oneway has the option of 1 1/2 or 2 hp motors. Other than that, main difference is Oneway has a longer bed, and PM has more throw. Oneway is steel, PM is cast iron. Biggest difference I can see there is they makd different noises when turning. I turned on a PM for 8 years before getting a Robust, which is all steel.

robo hippy
 
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The sliding headstock would be a great help for bowls and platters. I love turning without the bed in the way. Another thing to check out id the bearing problems a lot of people are noticing in the last year or two with the One Way Lathes. Good Luck and Happy Turning,

Dave
 
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Here's my opinion...

I have turned on both, and I prefer the Powermatic, but they are both great lathes.

Both have similar power and smoothness, although I might give the Oneway a slight advantage on the motor.

For me the sliding headstock is a big advantage, and I just find things function a little easier on the PM.

I don't like the handles on the Oneway banjo and tool rest - they interfere with each other. The lock down for the tailstock is in a better place on the PM. I find the bracket for the controls on the Oneway (while a good concept) gets in the way a lot. The space under the PM where you can put a shelf is a nice feature. It's easier to buy accessories with 1 1/4 X 8 then the M33 threads on the Oneway.

The shape of the headstock on the Oneway is better, the big block does get in the way on the PM sometimes, however I like having the outboard wheel to hand turn the spindle on the PM (you can make your own for the Oneway).

I don't mean to bad mouth Oneway, I think they're a great company, I just prefer the details on the PM -- and for the price you can get the PM and lots of accessories.
 

hockenbery

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I would get the oneway with the 17" extension on the outboard side gives you the short bed and the long bed.
If you do lots of drilling and use indexing the oneway is better at both.
The tool rest locks and tailstock locks the edge goes to one way.
The ease of moving the tool rest goes to oneway.
The oneway is quieter and smoother all around!

My recommendation:
buy the Powermatic and week class at arrowmont, Campbell, Anderson etc.
The skills you pick up in the class will make turning more fun than getting a new lathe.
Most likely you'll be happier with the powermatic and The skills from a good course.

Happy turning,
A
 
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I turn a great deal on both lathes and prefer the 1640. As far as handles on the banjo being in the way it only takes a few minutes to adjust them to lock at ones desired spot to keep them out of the way. The banjo and tail stock on the OW lock more secure with less effort than the PM. I prefer the tool rest of the OW 10 times more than the monster tool rest of the PM. I can take the tailstock off the OW with one hand, don't try that on the PM. The 1640 I turn on has the 24" outboard extension which give one a 24" short bed lathe and I turn most bowls on this end. I placed mine with the end of the inboard side toward the corner so that the outboard side has all the room you will ever need to turn at. This being said by the time you buy the outboard extension, the raiser block to use the tail stock on the out board side and the outboard banjo to accommodate normal tool rest on the outboard side, you will have almost as much in the lathe as you would a true 24" swing lathe such as Stuby, Robust, or VicMark. If Robust had been in business when I bought my 1640 one might be sitting in my shop in place of my OW. They are truly quality lathes and best of all they are made in the USA which is important to me.
Happy Shopping.
Jack
 
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The sliding headstock would be a great help for bowls and platters. I love turning without the bed in the way. Another thing to check out id the bearing problems a lot of people are noticing in the last year or two with the One Way Lathes. Good Luck and Happy Turning,

Dave

Hi Dave,

I have only heard of one person with a problem with the bearings on the Oneway. Maybe I missed the posts, but when you said "a lot of people" it made me curious.

Who are the others?

Thanks,

Dave
 

odie

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It's easier to buy accessories with 1 1/4 X 8 then the M33 threads on the Oneway.

The shape of the headstock on the Oneway is better, the big block does get in the way on the PM sometimes, however I like having the outboard wheel to hand turn the spindle on the PM (you can make your own for the Oneway).

I haven't any experience with either of these lathes, but do offer these comments:

Believe John Beaver is correct about the availability of accessories for the M33-3.5 vs 1 1/4x8tpi. For me, this would be a major consideration. I wonder why Oneway doesn't offer their lathes with an optional 1 1/4x8tpi spindle? If they did, I believe they'd sell a few more lathes because of that option......

Hand wheel would be necessary for me......Couldn't one just get a faceplate and install it on the outboard spindle for this?

ooc


(BTW: How is that M33-3.5 spindle measured? Is it 33mm in diameter, and 3.5 threads per centimeter?????)
 

john lucas

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I will agree with Dave. I've never heard of bearing problems with the Oneway. Or for that matter very few of any kind of problem. They make an excellent lathe.
I am also one who has problems with the handle placements, however these were not my lathe and I wasn't able to adjust the handles.
I tend to lay things on the top of the headstock of my powermatic and you can't do that on the Oneway.
I have heard several people including myself, complain about the controls being on a moveable arm. You have to remember where it is when hitting the off button in a panic, and I end up moving it often for different demos and find that a pain.
On the downside for the Powermatic, they do have a remote switch but it's cheap and quits working often. I have replaced mine with a better quality switch. It stays at the end of the lathe in the same position always so I have 2 switches that never move and I can access either one quickly without thinking.
 
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As far as banjos go, I like the one on my Robust best. Handle for moving is pretty simple. For tightening up the tool rest, instead of a bolt that you screw into the post, it has a bolt through which pulls a wedge into the post, which really locks it into place. My old PM had a single bolt, and I stripped the handle on it a couple of times before I had a friend weld a T handle on it. Now the lathe comes with 2 screw bolts to keep the tool rest from slipping down.

robo hippy
 
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(BTW: How is that M33-3.5 spindle measured? Is it 33mm in diameter, and 3.5 threads per centimeter?????)

With Metric threads it's the major diameter - pitch in millimetres.
M33-3.5 is 33mm diameter with a pitch of 3.5mm.
Dave
 
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As far as banjos go, I like the one on my Robust best. Handle for moving is pretty simple. For tightening up the tool rest, instead of a bolt that you screw into the post, it has a bolt through which pulls a wedge into the post, which really locks it into place. My old PM had a single bolt, and I stripped the handle on it a couple of times before I had a friend weld a T handle on it. Now the lathe comes with 2 screw bolts to keep the tool rest from slipping down.

robo hippy

+1. esp the R toolpost cinch, it's a joy.

An easy thing to improve a PM banjo a bit is enlarge the hole to the next size and get a bigger handle from MSC.
 

Steve Worcester

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I have used Oneways for >10 years and personally like the lock mechanisms in the banjo and tailstock vs the Powermatic. Perhaps they have fixed it, but the movable headstock and the tailstock when tightened down tend to jack, i.e. push each other. In light pressure you wouldn't see this, but with bowls and larger forms, one moves the other.

I have turned on both, and it would be easy to fix the powermatics problems with a larger surface area of the clamp block. Don't get me wrong, they are both great lathes. I don't see the metric thread as an issue at all, I have jillions of faceplates and accessories for my Oneway. Most any supplier worth their salt and wanting to gain market share makes a metric accessory. I don't see the bearings noise as an issue with mine, but it is 8 years old, and maybe there have been changes since then.
Pick the supplier and dealer you are happy with, it is them that you have to deal with. See if there is a club in your area that has members that own those lathes you can test out.
 
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It's easier to buy accessories with 1 1/4 X 8 then the M33 threads on the Oneway.

The Nova line of chucks do not have adaptors for 33x3.5 There isn't enough room in the chuck body for that size adaptor. You can get a directly threaded nova chuck at 33 x 3.5. Still John is correct that there are fewer 33x3.5 accessories available.

The MT on the Oneway tailstock is #3MT and there are fewer of those items available.

I don't consider this to be a problem as there are loads of accessories which fit the OW and I would not consider the quantity of accessories to be a determining factor in selecting one lathe over the other.
 
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I asked PM (when there still was a real PM) about why the tailstock would slide a bit when locked down if you put pressure on it. The tech (some one who knew about the lathe, and not some who had to look it up in a manual) told me that it was designed in because of you really cranked on the tailstock quill and it didn't move, you could crack the tailstock and or headstock.

robo hippy
 

john lucas

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I crank down on my tailstock all the time. I like to use it to seat the drive center. I have never had it slip and never cracked the tailstock. I worry more about stripping the threads on the quill feed screw but I take it apart every now and then to clean and lube it and don't have any problems. The same with the banjo. When I lock it down it stays.
 
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I would give serious consideration to the Robbust lathes. They are quality in all aspects and are made in the USA. They are available for use at David Ellsworth's school.
 

hockenbery

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I got an amazing spindle adapter from oneway some 15 years ago.
Inside threads m33 x 3.5. Outside threads 1 1/4 x 8. And it has a through hole with a Mose taper.

I just used this yesterday when I had to use an old vacuum chuck on a Woodfast faceplate.
Worked great.
This little wonder let's me add distance from the headstock for turning some natural edge pieces that won't spin with the spur drive directly in the headstock.

It must add some run out but I can see it or feel it.

The robust machines I have turned on are terrific. And I think they will build you one with spindle thread m33 x 3.5. Too!


Al
 
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Steve Worcester

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The MT on the Oneway tailstock is #3MT and there are fewer of those items available....

I use #2 taper live centers and use a #2-#3 adapter, costs about $5 or so and no alignment issues
 

John Van Domelen

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PM user

PM 3520b user here - my decision came down to one of economics, for less than the 1640, I was able to put together the lathe pictured - ~ 100 inches between centers with both the small and large bed extensions. Around 80 something as configured now, diameter over the short bed (which comes with a banjo extension, so you don't need a floor stand) is 37 inches - which I have put to good use. Haven't used all of the length capacity yet, but I'll not likely outgrow it either. :)

I have always found the PM tech guys to be very knowledgeable and helpful. Service after the sale on this lathe and my mini's has been outstanding.
 

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Face plate on outboard spindle

[QUOTE=odie;

Hand wheel would be necessary for me......Couldn't one just get a faceplate and install it on the outboard spindle for this?

ooc

Odie-That's what I use with one of my faceplates on my OW1640. Mostly use a screw "chuck" and rarely need a faceplate unless the center is punky necessitating 6 screws rather than a center large one, Gretch
 

odie

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=Gretch Flo;78294]

Odie-That's what I use with one of my faceplates on my OW1640. Mostly use a screw "chuck" and rarely need a faceplate unless the center is punky necessitating 6 screws rather than a center large one, Gretch

Hello Gretch........

Are the threads on both sides of the OW headstock cut for right hand threads?

Someone else mentioned the "big block" headstock on the PM. Since I'm primarily a screw-center faceplate turner, I spend a lot of time turning/sanding on the backside of the bowl while mounted. For most turners, they use re-mount techniques associated with chucks, and don't have to deal with this issue as much as I normally do. My Woodfast headstock is fairly small, like the OneWay.....but, even then, the size of the headstock is sometimes an issue for certain cuts and sanding. For my techniques, the PM would be much more problematic than the OW........:(

ooc
 
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Hello Gretch........

Are the threads on both sides of the OW headstock cut for right hand threads?

Someone else mentioned the "big block" headstock on the PM. Since I'm primarily a screw-center faceplate turner, I spend a lot of time turning/sanding on the backside of the bowl while mounted. For most turners, they use re-mount techniques associated with chucks, and don't have to deal with this issue as much as I normally do. My Woodfast headstock is fairly small, like the OneWay.....but, even then, the size of the headstock is sometimes an issue for certain cuts and sanding. For my techniques, the PM would be much more problematic than the OW........:(

ooc

The 2436 takes the same faceplates, chucks etc on each end, run in reverse on the outboard end. No learning curve at all.

One of the reasons I initially picked a 2436 was that with my small closed bowls I need alot of left handed access to form the top (while held from the top). At the time the 2436 was the best for that, and now the AB is even a touch better.

The 3520's blocky headstock is one of the worse in that regard, and I think if they streamlined the headstock (and maybe refreshed the banjo a touch) it would really take off. It's a heck of a lathe for the money otherwise.

That issue does not affect everyone, but with me has been one of the stumbling blocks for the vl300 (which is bevelled but my gouge still his the outter edge of the headstock). If not for that limitation (for me), I would buy a lb vl300 right now to replace my newer 2436.

And the MT400 I feel would do well with bevelling the leading edge of the headstock for the same reason, and maybe give some option for reducing the interference of my gouge handle and the headstock lever.

I've tried a spindle extension to solve the problem, but I can always feel that it is there - touch more vibration. Plus on my OW's there is a bit of runout (esp with the OW extender) and then when I remove the spindle extension to turn the lower part of the piece the piece is a bit out of true.

Here's pics of one of the positions I am talking about. Note my main gouges have a bevel of less than 40 degrees which exacerbates the issue. And since the bowl is closed, I have to cut both "outward" and left to right.

This left handed access is one of the issues that complicates my replacement of my 2436's (an extra constraint), but expect to have replaced both of them by next summer one way or another.
 

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john lucas

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This just shows how it's impossible to please all the turners. I like the powermatic flat headstock because I always have several things sitting on it for quick access, rulers, sometimes wrenches, calipers, etc. It hasn't been a problem getting to the backside of my turnings. As the saying goes get 3 turners together and you'll get 3 different answers, all correct. :)
 
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This just shows how it's impossible to please all the turners. I like the powermatic flat headstock because I always have several things sitting on it for quick access, rulers, sometimes wrenches, calipers, etc. It hasn't been a problem getting to the backside of my turnings. As the saying goes get 3 turners together and you'll get 3 different answers, all correct. :)

So true. It's a personal preference, and also depends on the type of work we each do.

In terms of setting things down, I have the short extension on both ends of my lathes, and typically use the outboard extension as a place to set things.

I don't mean to sound harsh to the 3520, as I am very impressed with them overall for the money. A friend bought a new scratch and dent one locally a couple years ago for $2200 and picked it up himself. Amazing lathe for that price, and he is very happy with it. Very quiet and smooth.
 

hockenbery

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Bill,
My ONEWAY came with a can of touchup paint.
My Sherry tells everyone I took it out of the box and asked "what is that for?"

I also appreciate the headstock access of the one way design.

The big Robust has plenty of access on front side of the headstock. But Zero on the back side.
I used to turn beads on bowls from the back side. I couldn't do this on the Robust.
You can get a Robust with a #3 Morse on the tailstock and m33 3.5 on the spindle.

The POWERMATIC has gone up in price a lot, Finding one for less than $4000 is probably easy but less than $3500????
I always enjoy turning on a POWERMATIC. Good solid machine does what I ask of it. The new black onyx is pretty on paper have't touched one.


Al
 
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Steven,
I'd choose a Robust, myself. It's got a sliding headstock (+other nice features), is at least as well made as the OneWay, and is made in America. You will also get fantastic customer support from Brent English, owner & designer of their lathes.

OneWay is a much better quality machine than Powermatic, if those 2 were the only choices. It's made in Canada. I'd only recomend the Powermatic if you can't/won't spend money for a better machine.

......only my opinion, of course...

Cindy
 

odie

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Steven,
I'd choose a Robust, myself. It's got a sliding headstock (+other nice features), is at least as well made as the OneWay, and is made in America. You will also get fantastic customer support from Brent English, owner & designer of their lathes.

OneWay is a much better quality machine than Powermatic, if those 2 were the only choices. It's made in Canada. I'd only recomend the Powermatic if you can't/won't spend money for a better machine.

......only my opinion, of course...

Cindy

Hi Cindy........

It's great to see an established woodturner on this forum giving her opinions! :cool2: There are one or two others, but I'd like to see honest opinions from you and those who are more well known.....and, more often! :D

Since I have one of your videos, I'm aware that you turn on a Oneway. (Is that the 2436 I see there?) In your travels, I'm sure you would be one that has had the opportunity to turn on just about all the current lathes........

I'd be interested to hear your more specific thoughts about what it is you feel is lacking in the Powermatic, when compared to the Oneway........?

The Robust appears to be very innovative in it's design, but the one thing that is a negative (from my perspective), is that it looks like the entire lathe it made from welded sheet metal and plate steel components. On the Robust web site, it mentions that the welded parts are "stress relieved"........I'm not quite sure I understand what it is they are doing to stress relieve (anyone know?), but the ability of steel to remain stable isn't as good as cast iron......this is why cast iron is still the preferred base component for precision industrial applications.

I realize, of course, that David Ellsworth uses a Robust.......but, since his endorsement also involves a financial interest in Robust sales, that would probably make some amount of difference..........

Be sure to check back here from time to time, lady! .......:D

ooc
 
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Stress relieve

Any time any welding is done you induce stress into the assembly from the differences of heat. There are many ways to stress relieve a welded assembly. The most common is to slowly apply heat to the whole assembly bring it up to a predetermined temperature then slowly cool. Another way is to shot peen the product. If the assembly is too large to get into a furnace the welded area can be stress relieved with a torch, slowly and carefully. These methods will stabilized the assembly.

Not all cast iron is stable. that depends on how slowly the casting is allowed to cool. Another thing to a casting is being able to weather it. I have seen acre after acre of castings that are out in the weather which makes them more stable.

In my career I have seen many "lots" of castings that were extremely fragile. that would fracture with the slightest tap. To solve that problem is to stress relieve.

A lot of this also applies to forgings.

The real difference between a casting and a fabricated assembly would be the number as in volume, the weight desired, and how it is used. Meaning that if you are going to use the casting also as a bearing it would be superior as it has some capacity for retaining oil that steel doesn't have. This might one of those things that can go on and on. But that is just my $.02 worth.

Good luck and happy turning,

Dave
 
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The biggest difference I have seen between the Oneway and the Robust is the sliding headstock, and the adjustable legs. Both are made of steel rather than the cast iron. I was told that all casting is done over seas now. As far as differences between the PM and the steel lathes, on both Robust and Oneway, the headstock spindle can be unbolted if you need to change the bearings. All are good lathes.

robo hippy
 
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Oneway 1640

I've turned on a 1640 for ten years and have found it to be a very fine lathe. I have the out side bed and the two hp motor. I do most of my bowl turning with the short bed. If you go with the Oneway you will make a committment to M33 accessories.
Having said that if I was buying a lathe today and had questions about which one I wanted, I would go take a class at Arrowmont and try out all the lathes they have there. They have just about everything.
 
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Oh, yea, one other difference. With the old PM3520A the minimum speed was almost 0 rpm. With the B model that went up to 50 before the motor turns off. This is standard for most 3 phase converter lathes (exception Nova DVR which used to be 200, and now I think it is 100). This is important to me for sanding my warped bowls. You can't keep your hand, the sand paper, or drill on the wood at speeds above about 20 rpm. I called the PM people and asked why they changed it:

"You'll burn up your motor and fry the electronics."

"I have sanded out thousands of bowls at that speed and had no problems."

"Well, you can't do that. If you want that done, we can do it, but you void your warranty is void, and you have to ship it here to us to do that."

I had Brent English walk me through lowering the speed, and actually raising the high end speeds a bit. I keep checking the motor for heat build up, and it runs cooler than when I am turning bowls. I don't know if Oneway would do this or not.

robo hippy
 

odie

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Oh, yea, one other difference. With the old PM3520A the minimum speed was almost 0 rpm. With the B model that went up to 50 before the motor turns off. This is standard for most 3 phase converter lathes (exception Nova DVR which used to be 200, and now I think it is 100). This is important to me for sanding my warped bowls. You can't keep your hand, the sand paper, or drill on the wood at speeds above about 20 rpm. I called the PM people and asked why they changed it:

"You'll burn up your motor and fry the electronics."

"I have sanded out thousands of bowls at that speed and had no problems."

"Well, you can't do that. If you want that done, we can do it, but you void your warranty is void, and you have to ship it here to us to do that."

I had Brent English walk me through lowering the speed, and actually raising the high end speeds a bit. I keep checking the motor for heat build up, and it runs cooler than when I am turning bowls. I don't know if Oneway would do this or not.

robo hippy

For some of us, the ability to have a very slow rpm is important.......it is important to me for the same reasons it is important to robo hippy.

For me, my normal sanding speed is somewhere around 300rpm, plus or minus.....but, the rules change with how much warp has occurred.

When finish turning, many well seasoned roughed bowls, with a low moisture content, will still have some amount of warping. This is especially true for "thin wall" bowls, some species, shapes, roughed wall thickness, original moisture content, etc.......and some will not warp at all. This is just the way it is, and we learn to deal with the real world results, instead of theories. Depending on how much warp you get, it's sometimes necessary to sand at very slow speeds......less than 100rpm, and down to about 25rpm, or in that range.

If a random orbital sander is used, you CANNOT have the lathe running at any rpm you would normally use for sanding discs, or paper sheets......but, it does a great job......IF.......you can get down into that extremely slow 25rpm range. Without the 25rpm capability, any use of the random orbital sander will need to be done at 0rpm.

I am relatively new to using a variable speed lathe, having converted my Woodfast in 2007......I had been changing belt/pulley for a couple decades prior to that. Since changing over to VS, my motor seems to be in good shape regardless of the slow sanding I've been doing.......will it burn out? That's a question unanswered for now, but so far, so good! I tend to think some manufacturers may have over-reacted to motor burn-out, and have prevented very slow rpm because some turners may have used the very slow speed capability for very long extended times.......but, that's just a guess on my part.

The bowl in the foreground is Maple, and warped badly during seasoning. I trued up the exterior as usual, but sanded the interior without further shaping. The result is rather spectacular, in my opinion. This would have been impossible to do without having that extremely slow rpm capability.

ooc
 

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john lucas

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I have the A series just before they changed to the B. Mine goes almost to 0 and I sand very slow especially on the warped bowls. I have not had a problem with the motor at all.
 
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Bill Boehme

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... I'd choose a Robust, myself. It's got a sliding headstock (+other nice features), is at least as well made as the OneWay, and is made in America. You will also get fantastic customer support from Brent English, owner & designer of their lathes......

I have owned my Robust American Beauty for all of five days now, but I have been seriously investigating it since its beginning. I picked it up at SWAT last weekend, but have been unable to turn anything yet because I had surgery on Monday and I am still recuperating.

While it was at SWAT Johannes Michelsen used it to demo his line of turning tools and turning classes. He is best known for his hat turning and turned two or three during the symposium. His booth was set up next to the Robust booth. If I am not mistaken Brent English delivered five Robust lathes at the SWAT symposium. One of the American Beauty lathes had the 24 inch bed extension which made it really long. There was also a Sweet 16 and a Liberty in the group. It appeared to me that there was always a large crowd around the Robust lathes.

.... The Robust appears to be very innovative in it's design, but the one thing that is a negative (from my perspective), is that it looks like the entire lathe it made from welded sheet metal and plate steel components.

The headstock, tool rest base, and tailstock are all cast. The main structure is square tubular steel. I am not sure of the wall thickness, but I think that it may be 3/8". The bed is made of half inch thick stainless steel ways welded to the square tubing with quarter inch thick webbing. If you get the tilt-away tailstock, the tilt mechanism is cast. The legs are partly square tubing approximately 3 X 3 inches (I am not sure of the thickness. The "sheet metal" that you see being used as bracing between the legs and frame appears to be a bit under 1/8 inch thick. For the way that my "flimsy sheet metal" :D lathe is configured, it weighs in at seven hundred pounds. There is absolutely nothing flimsy about this big hoss. Having adejustable height is really nice. It also allow the lathe to be leveled on uneven floors so that the weight is distributed evenly. One accessory that I might get next year is the swing arm tool rest when turning off the end of the lathe.

On the Robust web site, it mentions that the welded parts are "stress relieved"........I'm not quite sure I understand what it is they are doing to stress relieve (anyone know?), but the ability of steel to remain stable isn't as good as cast iron......this is why cast iron is still the preferred base component for precision industrial applications.

As already mentioned, heating and shot peening are two method of stress relieving metal. Somebody gave you some bad information or maybe it was misunderstood concerning "stability". I can't imagine what characteristic is being referred to for that statement. However, I can say that avoiding and dealing with internal stresses are major concerns in metal casting. I think that you would be hard pressed to find a cast gray iron headstock or lathe bed for a low or mid priced lathe made in a Pacific rim country that doesn't have casting flaws or unseen internal stresses. They generally are not a problem, but a bump or sharp blow can cause the stress to be relieved (as in, crack wide open).

I realize, of course, that David Ellsworth uses a Robust.......but, since his endorsement also involves a financial interest in Robust sales, that would probably make some amount of difference.

I think that he and others think about their reputation more than thinking about a few dollars of profit. In the art world, reputation i everything.

I get zero dollars to advertise for Robust -- in fact the money flow was all away from me and towards Robust, but I can give it a solid endorsement for whatever that is worth to you.
 

Bill Boehme

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...... The "sheet metal" that you see being used as bracing between the legs and frame appears to be a bit under 1/8 inch thick.....

I was going by memory when I wrote that, but figured that I needed to verify the thickness of the "sheet metal." It turns out that my memory was incorrect -- the thickness of the stamped metal parts is actually 3/16" -- far thicker than I remembered. Also, these leg "aprons" (or whatever they would be called) are not simple flat pieces. The piece on each end is a single three dimensional part that wraps around both sides that makes an "A" shape on the end of the lathe and a "V" shape on the front and back sides, Additionally, the edges are formed to make a two-inch "L" at the bottom where the jack can be used to lift the lathe and a one-inch "L" on the front and back. There are box channels that fasten to the legs. The tailstock end has a cross race while the headstock end has an electrical equipment enclosure for the motor controller.

So far, I don't see any indication that the legs are in danger of folding up, but I will be careful by starting out turning pens and bottle stoppers to see how things go. :D (just kidding)
 
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